Groovy teeth suggest dinosaur was venomous

Fossils show depression in upper jaw that held venom-producing glands

Well-preserved fossils of a feathered dinosaur that lived about 124 million years ago — along with certain aspects of its teeth and skull — suggest that the turkey-sized creature was venomous.

Sinornithosaurus was unearthed in China and first described by scientists about 10 years ago, but the telling details of the creature’s cranial anatomy are just now being reported, says David Burnham, a paleontologist at the University of Kansas in Lawrence.

This article is available only to subscribing members. Join SSP today or Log in.